In this photo illustration a package of Nicotine Gum, which is advertised as helping people stop smoking cigarettes, is seen on January 10, 2012 in Miami, Florida. A study published in the journal Tobacco Control on Monday, reported that the nicotine alternatives, like Nicotine Gum, have no lasting effect on people trying to quit their smoking habit. (Photo illustration by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

Sharon Beals is a San Francisco based photographer who has photographed nest and eggs specimens collected over the last two centuries at The California Academy of Sciences, The Museum of Vertebrate Zoology, and The Western Foundation of Vertebrate Zoology. While few nests are collected today, these nests and eggs are used for research, providing important information about their builder’s habitats, DNA, diseases and other survival issues.

Moscow’s Red Square has seen its share of strange stuff over the centuries, from medieval public executions to artistic self-mutilations. But a giant Louis Vuitton suitcase took many Muscovites completely by surprise. The 9-meter high, 30-meter long building covered in iconic gold-on-brown pattern erected last week is to host a historic exhibition.

Revelers gather on a commuter train platform of the HVV city public transportation system to drink alcohol on September 30, 2011 in Hamburg, Germany. Thousands of people participated in the event dubbed the “HVV Abschiedstrinken” (HVV Farewell Drink) that was organized through Facebook and is meant to celebrate the last day before a ban on alcohol consumption goes into effect on the city's public transport. (Photo by Joern Pollex/Getty Images)

The Rainbow Warrior III, the newest ship of the enivornmental conservation organization Greenpeace, makes its way to port on the Elbe River on October 20, 2011 in Hamburg, Germany. The Rainbow Warrior III, 53 meters long, designed by Greenpeace and built in Poland and Germany, is a EUR 23 million project completed last week. (Photo by Sean Gallup/Getty Images)

Gizzard, a chihuahua is held by his owner at the 31st Annual Tompkins Square Halloween Dog Parade in New York, U.S., October 23, 2021. Last year the parade was cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic. (Photo by Caitlin Ochs/Reuters)

The Democratic Republic of the Congo’s misfortunes have often eclipsed its good news, with ongoing armed conflicts and most recently an Ebola outbreak. Much of the world knows little of the country’s vibrant arts scene, and last weekend in the capital, Kinshasa, models showed off daring new looks dreamed up by local designers on the catwalk. (Photo by Olivia Acland/The Guardian)